Getting To Know You… Mum, Dad and the Kids

With our gig coming up on the 30th of October, it is lingering and poised just around the corner. In the run up to this, we thought it would be fitting to get in touch with one of our nearest and dearest who are playing at the show. We heard from Tim, the eccentric vocalist of Mum, Dad and the Kids who have previously been described as ‘a powerhouse of a sexy swaggering mix of Big Star and Ziggy Stardust.’ They are opening the night for us and have the potential to rip Brighton Electric apart from the off, their flamboyancy and onstage antics can only bring the sweetest of tears to your eyes. We really can’t wait for them and here’s a brief introduction to those of you who just don’t know what you are in for.

1. MDK have been going for a few years, how have you come on over those years? How has personnel changes effected dynamics and sound?

I think the first line up was around 5 years ago & the only 2 original members are me (Tim/Mum) & Simon (Kid 1), the drummer and this is now the 4th incarnation of the band. Only the other night, after our show, I was giving out some of our CDs – each with a different line up and I found myself having to explain how the sound had changed with each different group of players! On the first one we were only just finding our sound I guess, then we lost our key songwriter and singer so the 2nd was us proving to ourselves that we could do it without him and thankfully, we could and did! Then Joe Watson (Stereolab) joined us on bass. Joe comes with an impeccable musical pedigree and it really started to change the instinctive and visceral rock’n’roll of Simon, me and Bob Lane (our session lead player of then) into something more cerebral and considered. The addition of Joe attracted the attention of Etienne Rodes (Bass in CLOWwNS) who was itching to play a bit of lead guitar too. Etienne composed some amazing tumbling melodic guitar lines that always put me in mind of a mix of Tom Verlaine & Johnny Marr and that helped to shape what we do now. When he had to leave because of his commitments to CLOWwNS I thought that was it for MDK but then Joe Moon happened. We’d met him at our rehearsal studio & he was frequently the guy dancing at the front at our gigs! He was in the right place at the right time for us. The perfect blend of musical intelligence and gutsy rock’n’roll. So, what I’m finally getting round to saying is that each new line up adds something new to the mix and I think that’s the thing that keeps this MDK fresh and exciting. The lineup constantly changing has, paradoxically, been the best thing to happen to this band.

2. Obviously, we are very excited to have you play at our #2 showcase next week, how can you describe your ‘art rock’ genre to those less arty and less rocky?

It’s really hard to describe your bands sound! I try and then I fail, but we can certainly ‘rock’ and we do it artfully! The whole MumDad&theKids concept only really works within a visual context so the ‘Art’ and the ‘Rock’ are inextricably linked. If you’ve seen our band photos you’ll know that we’re a very visual entity, we recently shot a dark video for a song called ’57 seconds’ with the artist Sam Hewitt and we really want that kind of artistic and musical collaboration to continue so the finished piece becomes creatively stimulating on different levels. Music wise – someone described us last weekend as ‘making pop songs for adults’ – I kind of liked that!

3. Is music something that has driven you as individuals from a young age?

Simon definitely – he was born with twirling drumsticks in his hands. Joe Watson knew he was a musician even before he’d picked up an instrument. I came to it later – I learned to play and write just us a vehicle to allow me to sing – I’ve always loved singing, it says so on my primary school report. Joe Moon is still at a young age too!

4. How do you find Brighton has been a supportive platform for your music?

The Brighton venue issue is frustrating. We’ve lost too many as a result of draconian anti-noise legislation imposed and upheld by the council where ignorant, intolerant neighbours can have an established venue closed down – the resulting loss of jobs and loss of positive, creative, cultural and social environments for younger people is a farce. I’m not sure that Brighton does nearly enough for grass roots arts considering what the grass roots arts have done for Brighton. Saying that, there’s a wealth of creativity in Brighton and still loads of incredible and accessible creative spaces – we just need to support them and preserve them as they’re far more valuable to this city than a few more ‘luxury’ flats.

5. What’s next for MDK, where do you progress to? Do you see your relationship with Bleeding Heart Recordings something that will garner and develop over time?

Well, we’ve just finished recording our new double A of ‘Future Proofed’ and ‘When in Rome’ and that will, hopefully get a release on Bleeding Hearts this year. Bleeding Hearts are a cool, local label with the likes of CLOWwNS & CUZ regularly appearing on 6music and it would be lovely to be on their roster full time in order to put out an album next year. Our next gig after the ‘Give it Back’ Showcase is on Friday 4th December at The Prince Albert where we’ll be supporting the awesome girl group ‘The Priscillas’ before they head off on tour around Spain. We met in London when we played there in August and they really liked what we were doing so we’ve hooked this gig up together – there’ll be high heels, glitter, PVC & leopard skin… I’m not sure what they’ll be wearing though.

So that is Mum Dad and the Kids. That’s what Tim has to say and that’s what Time is going to give. We sure as hell can’t wait for the charismatic avalanche to hit you next Friday so definitely make sure you don’t miss them.